Zelensky warned that Russia will want to go further if it captures the besieged city of Bakhmut.

ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenskyclaimed the Russian military would have the ‘open road’ to eastern Ukraine if it captured the besieged town of Bakhmut, in an interview with the US Network CNN.

“We understand that after Bakhmut, they will go further. They could go to Kramatorsk, they could go to Slovianskit would be an open path for the Russians after Bakhmut,” he said. CNN in an interview that will air on Wednesday.

The Russian army has vowed to capture the eastern town of Bakhmut, a symbolic prize after months of bloody fighting, as a precursor to deeper offensives in Ukraine.

The Battle of Bakhmut, a mining town with a pre-war population of 80,000, was the longest and bloodiest of the Russian invasion, which devastated large swaths of Ukraine and displaced millions of people.

“Capturing (Bakhmut) will allow offensive operations deep into the defensive lines of the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told military officials in a televised meeting.

Zelensky assured CNN that their armed forces are determined to remain in Bakhmut.

“I had a meeting with the chief of staff and the military commanders…and they all say to stand firm in Bakhmut,” he said.

“Of course, we have to think about the lives of our soldiers, but we have to do what we can while we get weapons, supplies and our army prepares for the counter-offensive,” he added. .

The intelligence services of United Kingdom stressed on Tuesday that the “public disagreements” between the Russian Ministry of Defense and the Wagner Group reveal the “difficulties” in maintaining the current level of the offensive against the Ukrainian city of Bakhmutlocated in the region of Donetsk (It is).

“The public disagreements between the Wagner Group and the Russian Ministry of Defense over the delivery of ammunition underscore the difficulty of maintaining the high level of personnel and ammunition required to advance with their current tactics,” they argued, according to a series of messages published by the British. Ministry of Defense via its account on the social network Twitter.

Thus, they pointed out that “Ukrainian defense of Bakhmut continues to degrade forces on both sides” and stated that “Ukrainian forces likely stabilized their defensive perimeter over the weekend after previous Russian advances north of the city”.

“A Russian attack on or about March 2 destroyed a bridge over Bakhmut’s only paved supply route still under Ukrainian control. The muddy conditions are likely hurting Ukrainian supply efforts as they increasingly rely on unpaved roads,” they said.

(With information from AFP)

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